The Survey
A strange feeling engulfed my bedroom, as I clicked on the link that had been hyped about for the past week on Equestria Daily. An anonymous link that was supposedly "cursed," and to whoever clicked on it would be dead or disappear within the following three hours of clicking. Stupidly, I challenged the curse, just like countless other idiotic thrill-seekers, and with one simple click, my life was over. The link radiated a blood-red glow, and re-directed me to another page. Something that looked like a survey of some sort, much like polls you see on Facebook brony groups like "who is your favorite pony," or something along those lines.
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The page was a simple survey composed of ten questions, but before the survey could be taken, a large paragraph of instructions in a blood-red font color were to be read first.
Welcome. Your life is about to change, but while taking this survey you MUST follow these instructions, or you will pay dearly for disobeying the rules.
1. Do not close the page.
2. Do not turn off your device
3. Do not call the police or leave your current seated area
4. Do not unplug your device
5. Do not shout, cry, or attempt to call for any help
6. You must click the link at the end of the survey
7. Your first answer is your final answer
8. NO RETAKES! What you choose is your fate
Have fun, and don't say we didn't warn you.
I gulped, knowing that there was no turning back now. I couldn't close the page or shut off my device, so I was stuck. I truly was trapped, as I proceeded to the first question of the survey.
QUESTION 1: How old are you?
I expected this, due to the countless downloads I had done in the past, requiring my age to download the content. Most of these downloads were either music or pictures of R34 Twilight Sparkle, seeing she is probably my favorite pony, and looks sexy in tube socks. My current age was 18, so I typed in "18," then proceeded to the next question.
QUESTION 2: Who is your favorite pony?
Again, another expectation. I had taken multiple MLP surveys and quizzes before, each with this same question. It was clear who my favorite pony was, so I typed in "Twilight Sparkle," then proceeded to the next question.
QUESTION 3: Why is Twilight Sparkle your favorite pony?
This was unusual, seeing most surveys and quizzes are generated to ask only certain questions, based on the answer given by the user, and this was something that I had never been asked. I just guessed that the survey had a large arrangement of options, based off of the answers given, and continued by typing my best reason why Twilight was my favorite.
"She is very smart, brave, bold, and easily the most attrac...
I stopped myself before typing the rest of my reasoning, and thought twice about putting that statement. The creator of this survey can see all of the answers, so for me to give such an embarrassing reason for liking Twilight Sparkle would make me look weird, so I decided not to put the statement that she was attractive. I was breaking rule 7, but it was just a stupid survey, and the curse wasn't real.
"She is very smart, brave, and bold. She can take on any challenge and overcome it with her friend's assistance. That's why she's my favorite."
I submitted the answer, and proceeded to the next question, but what happened next, is where things started to get scary. It didn't proceed to another question, but just remained still for a second, until my Skype erupted with a call. My first instinct was to ignore it, until my Skype opened all by itself, revealing a caller named "Magicfreak42" calling me. I proceeded to just ignoring the call, but was shocked when I saw that the option to ignore the call was nowhere to be found. I decided to go with my next instinct, and just let the call die out, but that option was shattered quick, as the call was answered all by itself.
I had no idea what to say, as I heard a voice over the call.
"So, I heard that you like me in tube socks," spoke the voice.
My eyes bulged, as I quickly recognized the voice, but it couldn't be her. No. That's impossible. However, the voice was crystal clear, and the mentioning of the tube socks made my heart drop, and sweat build up on my forehead.
"What's the matter, big boy? I thought I was your favorite?" spoke the voice again.
That was Twilight Sparkle's voice, without a doubt, but this could not be possible. How was this even possible right now? That's when a thought came to me. This could be a voice actor for Twilight, but how the hell did they get my Skype contact, and how did they know that I thought she looked sexy in tube socks?
"I see you need proof that it's really me, so here you go," spoke the supposed Twilight.
All of my suspicions immediately shattered to nothing, as the unknown contact revealed themselves on webcam. On webcam, was the REAL Twilight Sparkle, dressed in lingerie, and posed on her bed with purple and violet striped tube socks dressed over her hooves. Now, I was truly starting to freak out, and not in a good way. This couldn't be real. It couldn't. Twilight Sparkle is a fictional character, but yet, here she was, right before my eyes on webcam.
"Y-You can't possibly be real?!" I spoke through a shaky voice.
"Well, I am," she responded. "Somepony messaged me, telling me that you didn't follow the rules of the survey you are taking, therefore, they wanted me to do them a dirty deed. As we speak, all the photos of me that you have downloaded are being broadcasted to every one of your kind."
I felt my blood run cold, as my ears ate the words that Twilight had just said to me.
"What?!" I yelled. "How did you get into my photos?! How did you get into my computer?! How did you know I was taking a survey!?"
"Don't you know anything?" she responded coldly. "Magic goes a long way."
She chuckled, then the call ended.
I didn't waste no time, and quickly checked my photos, only to see the files where the pictures were stored, completely empty. How was this even possible!? I had to be dreaming. Yeah, that's it! I just fell asleep at my computer desk, and would wake up any second. I waited, hoping for this nightmare to end, until I saw a message appear on my Skype. It was from Twilight.
"Get back to the survey. This is no dream."
Through my fear and embarrassment, I knew now that this was real, and I was stuck. I had broken the rules once, and wasn't going to do it again. I returned to the survey, where question 3 still remained unanswered. It wanted me to type the first answer I was going to give, so I proceeded to it, feeling an uneasiness come over me.
"She is very smart, bold, and easily the most attractive pony of the Mane Six."
I submitted my answer, watching the survey move onto the next question.
QUESTION 4: Explain why Twilight Sparkle is attractive to you
This wasn't a question, and I really didn't want to answer this question. If anything, I just wanted to close this survey and forget this ever happened, but it was already too late. I didn't dare lie, considering what just happened moments ago, so I swallowed all my dignity and typed in my reason.
She's attractive in many ways. Her mane style, her personality, and her wings make her look like a goddess.
I submitted the answer, hoping for the survey to just continue onto the next question. Luckily it did.
QUESTION 5: Time for some fun. Twilight Sparkle has received your submissions, and has a present for you
What the hell? This wasn't even a question, and what did it mean by "fun?" I didn't want to know the answer, as I heard my fax machine start to erupt. I had a feeling that this was the "present" the survey had mentioned. I checked my fax machine, only to discover a picture of one of Twilight's socks, and instructions at the bottom.
"You know my contact. Call me, and in the call, you do as I say. We are still taking the survey, so rules still apply. Now the real fun begins."
I was scared shitless, and could only blame myself, seeing I had made the choice of clicking the link. As much as I regretted it now, there was no turning back, so I re-opened my Skype, and called back my latest contact, Magicfreak42. The call didn't take less than a split second to answer, revealing Twilight Sparkle on webcam once more, still dressed in her same outfit. However, she didn't look sexy, but sinister in the camera, as she stared into my soul through the webcam.
"We are going to play a game," she said. "I'm going to ask you a series of questions and all you have to do is answer each question truthful. Don't even try lying, because you know as well as me that I can tell you are lying."
I knew she wasn't kidding, so I nodded my head, as I noticed Twilight's horn glow and she held up a list. I had no idea what to expect, nor how far these questions were going to go.
"Question one, what elementary school did you attend?" she asked.
This was a strange question, but I was in no position to question her, so I just answered.
"Redwood Elementary School," I answered.
Twilight smiled through the webcam, proceeding to the next question.
"Question two, were you ever picked on or bullied during your years of attendance?" she asked.
I didn't need to even think twice about the question. I was ruthlessly bullied before by an arrogant asshole, all because I was a brony. There was one point in my life where I nearly committed suicide because of the bullying, and wished I could kill the asshole.
"Yes," I answered.
Twilight smiled again, proceeding to the next question.
"Question three, what was their name?" she asked.
Once again, I didn't need to think hard about it, his name was burned into my mind.
"Kenny Reed," I answered.
Twilight turned from the webcam, as I waited. I told the truth, so I wasn't afraid of being punished for my wrongdoings. Through my headset, I heard a familiar sound. The sound of when Twilight teleports, followed by another voice as well. Twilight turned to the camera again, as I continued to listen to the other voice in the background. I wanted to question who it was, but the rules were clear, and Twilight would punish me if I even attempted to question anything, so I kept my mouth shut.
"Question four, did you ever have any thoughts of killing this individual?" she asked.
It was as if she had read my mind. Just moments ago, I had said that I had stated that at one point in my life, I wanted to kill Kenny. I couldn't answer truthfully, but I had to.
"Yes," I answered.
I was scared to death of what was coming next, as Twilight approached the webcam, and started to adjust it to where I could see a disturbing sight within her room. A human was tied to a chair, struggling to get free, but from what I could see, they were tied up very well. Twilight held the list up once more.
"Final question, am I really your favorite?" she asked.
I was afraid to answer. What would she do if I did answer truthfully? I was trying to piece together the puzzle in my head, only to come to realization of who the human was. It was Kenny, and if I answered truthful, she would kill him. It was at this point where I was finally starting to come to realization that this was no game. Everything that was happening right now, was real, and Kenny's fate was in my hands. If I didn't answer truthfully, I'd be punished, but if I did answer truthfully, Kenny would be killed. I had to decide.
"What's wrong?" she asked. "It's a simple question. Am I really your favorite? Yes or no? Remember, no lying or you will be punished."
Twilight was my favorite, but not enough to kill someone I hated. How could I answer this truthfully? I lied.
"No," I answered.
Twilight's face in webcam fell from a smile to a frown. She knew I was lying.
"Strange that you would say that, considering that in one of your survey answers, you put that I was your favorite," she stated. "For your lies, you shall witness death!"
Twilight turned to Kenny with her horn pointed directly at him, and charged up a large amount of magic. With no hesitation, she fired the mass of magic directly at Kenny, immediately killing him. Out of the blast, Kenny's body was scorched, and multiple bones stuck out of his joints, due to him being stuck to a chair. A massive puddle of blood formed around the body, as Twilight teleported Kenny's body back to wherever it came from originally.
I felt sick, realizing that I had the consequences of my actions backwards. Twilight just added salt to my wound, as she turned back to the camera.
"If you were more honest, I would've let Kenny live, but due to your dishonesty, you now have blood on your hands!" she stated in an angry tone. "Not to worry though. I know I'm still your favorite, and we are going to have fun. Lots of fun."
I started to cry, feeling a sickness build up inside of me. I had just cost the life of someone, and despite the past, I felt horrible. Instead of freeing Kenny, I had gotten him killed. The exact opposite of what I wanted, all because I had not stuck to the truth.
"Now, now. Don't cry," she said. "Let's continue, shall we."
Suddenly, Twilight disappeared from my computer screen, due to the call ending. I didn't get comfortable, knowing that the survey wasn't done. If anything, it was just beginning. I was unsure of what to do, as I came back to the survey screen, where a new set of five answers were listed. I looked at the first answer, wiping tears from my eyes.
QUESTION 6: Did you enjoy Twilight Sparkle's game?
I didn't waste any time, and typed in my true thoughts.
"No!"
I submitted the answer, leading to the next question.
QUESTION 7: Are you enjoying this survey?
Once again, I didn't waste any time, and typed in my thoughts.
"No! Whoever created this is a sick bastard! I want out! I wish I had never taken this stupid survey!"
I submitted the answer with a violent pound to my "enter" key on my keyboard, leading to the next question. I just wanted this survey to end, so I could try to forget about everything I had witnessed tonight. I'd never forget.
QUESTION 8: How would you rate this survey?
I was too angry to give a reasonable answer, so I released all my anger at whoever had created this demented survey.
"I would rate this as a big FUCK YOU/10! How bout that asshole!"
Another loud pound to my "enter" key erupted, leading to the next question. I was so close to finally escaping this survey from hell, and once I was out, I would make sure nobody ever took this survey ever again.
QUESTION 9: Twilight Sparkle would like to ask you a question.
Twilight: "I thought I was your favorite? Do you hate me now?"
INSERT REPLY HERE:
I thought of the best way to answer this. Twilight had just killed an innocent person, despite all he had done in the past. Could I blame her for my decision? It was my choice to lie, in an attempt to save Kenny, but it had backfired. Was she playing the same game with me? If I answer truthfully, would I be free to go, or was this another mind trick. Did I hate her truly? To be honest, I didn't know what to think of her right now, but "I don't know" wasn't an answer, so I went with my most truthful answer.
"I don't hate you, but at the same time I don't like you after what you did. You sure are not my favorite anymore. Not after this, so to be completely honest. No, you are not my favorite Twilight. Not anymore."
I submitted my answer, awaiting whatever was coming next. She didn't respond. Instead, the survey just proceeded to the final question.
QUESTION 10: Download the file below, and watch the video located in the file.
Below the question was a file labelled as "PONY.ZIP," so I clicked on it, noticing the file appear in my download list at the bottom of the screen. It wasn't a very large file, being only 4 mb in size. I right clicked the file, and selected the "open when done" option, waiting for the file to finish downloading. I was just relieved the survey was over, as I watched the file finish its download, and open, revealing a video file. It was labelled as,"Fate.mp4"
The name of the file made a chill run down my spine, as I double-clicked the video file, noticing my VLC Media Player open the video and play it. The video was of Twilight Sparkle standing in the middle of the same room she was in, in the Skype call. She stared blankly into the camera, holding a knife with her magic. The video lasted for a good thirty seconds, before Twilight was replaced by a black screen with the word "goodbye" written in a blood-red color.
The video ended, returning to the survey, where a small paragraph was appeared, written in blood-red text.
Thank you for taking the survey! We hope you enjoy your results!
Goodbye.
With that, the survey screen closed, returning to Equestria Daily. I was both relieved, yet scared, as I closed my internet browser, and immediately reached for my cell phone, so I could report the survey to the police. I dialled 911, and listened as the phone rang for a few seconds, hearing an answer on the other end.
"911. What is your emergency?"
I was relieved not to hear Twilight's voice, as I did my best to remain calm.
"I would like to report a website, please," I spoke.
"Hello?" questioned the lady on the other end of the line.
"Can you hear me?" I asked, as a chill ran down my spine.
Suddenly, the call fell to static, as continued to yell "hello" into the phone, hoping for the lady to hear my pleas, but the call had fallen to a new tone, and it became clear of what was happening, as I saw my Skype open by itself once again, noticing "Magicfreak42" calling me once more. I didn't have time to ignore the call, not that I could, as Twilight appeared on my screen in the same pose as she was in the video. I still had my cell phone up to my ear, feeling my hands start to shake.
Twilight continued to stare at me, as she spoke a familiar word.
"Goodbye," she spoke in a blank tone.
I dropped the phone from my ear, noticing that when she had spoke, the call on my phone and the call on my Skype were in tandom. How was this even possible? I had officially entered panic mode, as I rushed to unplug my computer, immediately closing off the Skype call. Without hesitation, I grabbed my phone, removed the back of the phone, pulled out the battery, and threw the phone as hard as I could toward the wall, busting it beyond repair. Next, I grabbed a nearby baseball bat, and landed blows to the computer multiple times, without stopping. It was beyond repair, as I opened my window, grabbed the tower of the computer and threw the tower out of the two story window.
The tower busted beyond repair at the impact of the fall. I didn't care if I had just destroyed my computer, I didn't want any chance of ever hearing Twilight or contacting Twilight ever again. I let out a sigh of relief, knowing that Twilight had no chance of contacting me again.
"She's gone. It's over," I spoke in relief.
The room was quiet for a second, until I heard a voice from behind.
"It's not over until your fate is sealed," spoke a familiar voice, as I was engulfed in an aura of magic.
I screamed and struggled, my bedroom television turned on, revealing the same room that Twilight had shown herself in before. Before I was taken away, I let out one final scream that was quickly silenced by the television static.
I startled, as I was awoken by the sound of a light switch. I couldn't move or see, due to my arms and legs being constricted by a strong rope. My mouth was stuffed with something as well. Something soft and long. My eyes were uncovered quickly, revealing a bright light above me, and a blurry blob of purple in front of me.
"Oh good. You're awake," spoke the voice.
My ears didn't deceive me. It was the voice of Twilight Sparkle, standing before me with a knife being held in an aura of magic. I was terrified, as I looked at her. I couldn't speak, until the purple alicorn pulled down whatever was blocking my mouth.
"Where am I?" I asked in a low and weak tone.
"This is where you receive your results for taking the survey!" she replied in a happy tone. "Your results are that you get to be part of the survey! Isn't it wonderful!"
I didn't answer, and instead, fell into a cry. Twilight placed her hoof under my chin, lifting my head.
"Don't cry. Here's how it works. Somebody else gets to decide your fate, and depending on what they choose, I guess you know what happens if they choose wrong," she spoke with a smile.
It dawned on me. Whoever takes the survey becomes part of the survey. It's a never-ending cycle, and just like the countless other victims of the survey, would never escape. The curse was real. Who created it, I had no idea, and all I could hope for, was that eventually the survey would be removed, and some lucky soul would make it out alive. Out of the sounds of my crying and Twilight's hooves clapping together, the sound of a message notification erupted from a computer just behind Twilight.
Twilight checked the notification, then turned toward me with a look of sadness.
"Sorry to say, but our time together must be cut short, but don't worry, I'll always remember you," she spoke, charging up her horn. "I know you like me in tube socks, so I thought I'd give you one as a gift. Sorry it has to end this way, but it's their choice to decide your fate, not mine."
Twilight stuck the tube sock back into my mouth, as she backed up, and prepared for the final blast.
"Goodbye," spoke Twilight, as she fired the mass of magic at me.
All I felt before I died, was the softness of the tube sock against the back of my throat. My fate was sealed.
SURVEY COMPLETE